As Forest gets ready to play again in the Premier League on Monday night, Steve Cooper says he is looking forward to integrating new players into his team.
The Reds returned to play when Burnley visited The City Ground for the second time this season after ending the international break with a 1-0 victory against Chelsea in their last match.
Cooper spoke with the media prior to Monday’s game to speak on a variety of subjects after the break and the transfer window’s close.
Regarding integrating new members of the team…
“There’s no doubt that it’s a process.
“We discovered that last season; first, we had to go through the process of coming together as a team, and then it was something similar when we sustained all the injuries in the second half of the season, when we had to start over.
“Bringing new players into the club requires a delicate balancing act in terms of their integration, but maybe we can achieve it.
There will be a lot of individual context because some people have played many games while others haven’t, and we’re really looking forward to that.
On the competition for positions…
“It’s a competitive squad now; from the goalkeeper to the players at the top of the pitch, there is strength in depth and genuine fight for positions, which is what we want.
“That kind of culture, where players have to work hard to make the next team, is what you want.”
Regarding Ibrahim Sangaré…
It’s good to get to know him properly because we have only just returned from international duty and have only just seen him train today.
He has undeniable talent and fits the description of the midfield player we wanted to sign. We are looking forward to working with him.
“It’s taken a while to get him here, but we’re happy he chose us because there were so many other clubs he could have gone to, and we’re really looking forward to working with him,” they said.
about Burnley…
There are always things to learn from, as we didn’t exactly cover ourselves in glory against Burnley the previous time we played.
“Sometimes the tough times and the terrible games are the best ways to learn, and that was definitely not a game we did well in at all.
“I’m not sure if that will have an influence on Monday. We won’t be thinking about anyone else but ourselves, and how committed we are to the strategy we believe will win the match. By doing that, we greatly increase our chances of getting the desired outcome.